1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to manual shelf management systems, and more specifically to a space saving, manual, open bottom, containing and supporting, shelf management system.
2. Background Information
In stores, for example grocery stores, that display products on shelves it is necessary to continually move the products from the rear to the front of the shelf so that customers can more readily see and select those items that they desire. The movement of products towards the front of the shelf is called “facing” or “fronting.” It is also essential that the products be arranged laterally (side-to-side) as closely as possible to conserve limited and valuable lateral shelf space, and thereby maximize the products that can be displayed and sold.
Furthermore, if the products are hidden at the rear of the shelf or if an insufficient depth of the shelf is utilized and the product is thereby more readily exhausted, or if the products are in disarray, potential sales are lost. Stocking new products on store shelves requires significant time and effort. Products must be painstakingly positioned on the shelves in straight rows, and sometimes product containers are stacked one on top of the other adding to the difficulty for the worker. Stocking becomes a taxing exercise in finesse and physical exertion, especially when stocking low or high shelves. Further, products are frequently “rotated” with older items brought to the front of the shelf and newer items placed in the rear. Also, products are occasionally moved to a different location of the store altogether, called “resetting” of the products. Ordinarily all of these so-called “shelf conditioning” tasks described above require the handling of each individual item (e.g. each soup can). This individual handling of items is time-consuming, imprecise and creates fatigue for store personnel.
The prior art has addressed some of these issues and developed relatively complex machines to advance rows of products on a shelf. These devices are generally complex with multiple parts, are expensive, and involve a complicated installation. Further, some of these prior art devices do not maximize the amount of lateral shelf space available for product display.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,703,987; 2,652,154; 3,028,014; 3,083,067; 3,110,402; 3,357,597; 4,300,693; 4,724,968; 4,729,481; 4,730,741; 4,762,236; 4,830,201; 4,836,390; 4,901,869; 4,907,707; 5,012,936; 5,069,349; 5,111,942; 5,123,546; 5,240,126; 5,450,969; 5,542,552 5,992,652; 6,105,791; 6,129,218; 6,357,606; 6,382,431; 6,484,891; 6,772,888; 6,886,700; 6,889,854; 7,063,217; and 7,168,579 disclose complex mechanisms for advancing product rows which, in general, provide a spring-biased backstop which constantly and automatically forces the products from the rear toward the front of the shelf. While these so-called “spring-loaded” devices are generally effective for managing light-weight merchandise (e.g. packages of panty hose) they are generally not effective when used for heavier items (e.g. jars of pasta sauce). They are also complex with combined plastic and metal construction and are relatively costly. Additionally, the constantly biased backstop can increase the difficulty of restocking the shelves, as in all of these arrangements, the spring-biased backstop must be pushed back with one hand while the new products are positioned on the shelf. Further, the springs can lose their tension over time rendering the system less effective.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,768,659, 4,785,945, 5,160,051 and 5,197,610 disclose shelf management systems that utilize an inclined shelf where products are urged to the front of the shelf by force of gravity. These so-called “gravity fed” systems will not operate with existing flat shelves; rather, the existing shelving is removed and new inclined shelves are installed. A time-consuming and costly installation process is required that involves wholesale removal of existing store shelving and installation of new shelving.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,991,116 discloses a “gravity fed” shelf management system that installs on existing flat supermarket shelving. While effective in merchandising cans, this system is less effective for jars and will not work for boxes. It also requires special vertical shelf spacing. This system is complex, is relatively expensive, requires an involved installation and is difficult to move in the case of a resetting of the products.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,042,096 discloses a shelf management system having a “pusher” disposed behind the row of products with side members tying the pusher to a pull handle at the front of the shelf and to confine the row of objects laterally in alignment. A rail is disposed at the front of the shelf to prevent objects from falling off the shelf as the pusher is drawn forward by the handle. Resilient means are disposed behind the pusher to return it and the handle to normal position after being drawn forward by a pull on the handle. The system does not present a compact shelf management solution and incorporates a significant number of components including a return spring that is subject to fatigue and failure. The accumulated thicknesses of the side members, which stack laterally against one another, consume too much lateral shelf space and selling space is lost.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,079,754 discloses a complex arrangement with multiple parts which combines the dispensing of the products with the movement of the products toward the front of the shelf. The side members are arranged in a laterally stacking fashion such that the accumulated thicknesses of the side members combine to consume too much lateral shelf space. Selling space on the shelf is thereby lost. Multiple parts of this complex system include a detached “floating” backstop as well as a separate pulling and article receiving component that is manually operated for product movement and dispensing.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,098,844 discloses a shelf management system that forms a product supporting tray within which the product can be advanced. This is a complex, multi-piece system that requires installation of components both on the top and on the underside of the shelf such that most standard store shelves would have to be replaced with custom-designed shelves to accommodate this system. Further, because the side members of the frames of this system laterally stack against one another, the accumulation of the combined thicknesses of the side members consumes too much lateral shelf area. Lateral selling space on the shelf is lost.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,719,151 and US Published Patent Application Number 2004/0178158 disclose a wire frame shelf management system that provides a manual open bottom shelf management system. The system is designed primarily to fit under the open, concave rounded edges at the base of certain products (e.g. jars of pickles) and fails to provide significant lateral support for the products. This lack of lateral support can result in products moving to the left or right or even tipping over during advancement creating significant problems during product movement. Further, to use this system for products that do not have rounded edges at the base, such as cans and small boxes, a specially formed tray must be installed to elevate the displayed products to create a space underneath the products within which the system can function. In an alternative embodiment wedge-shaped dividers are provided which offer limited lateral support; however, in this embodiment, the wedge-shaped dividers laterally stack side-to-side and the accumulated thicknesses of these dividers consume too much lateral selling space. In its preferred embodiment this system fails to provide lateral product support. In a further embodiment the system requires an additional tray apparatus to function which requires an added installation step and added cost. In a still further embodiment the system employs wedge-shaped dividers that stack side-to-side thereby consuming valuable lateral selling space.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,124,897 discloses an assembly deployed on a complex multi-piece platform and features a base divided into rows with dividers. For each row there is a manually-operated pusher mechanism in the form of a rectangular wire device with a front handle and a rear portion that is bent upwards to form a back-stop. The sides of the wire device ride in grooves positioned along either side of the base on which the products rest. This system is complex with multiple parts and would be relatively costly to produce. Neither the divider spacing nor the width of the pusher mechanism is adjustable; therefore this system can not be adapted to accommodate products that differ in width from those for which the system was originally designed. In an alternative embodiment merchandise rides on a base with integral ball bearings or rollers, in either case a complicated and costly feature.
U.S. Pat. Nos. D472,411; 1,702,987; 1,708,407; 1,910,046; 2,980,259; 5,411,146; 5,413,229; 5,469,976; 5,638,963; 6,082,556; 6,155,438; 6,227,386; 6,375,015; 6,527,127; 6,823,997; and 6,923,330 disclose a variety of shelf management systems that are representative of the art. All of these systems use complex designs with multiple pieces. All are relatively costly, and all require involved installation.
The above identified patents are representative of the art and these references are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. It is the object of the present invention to address the deficiencies of the prior art shelf management systems and provide a highly effective, very low-cost, easy to install and easy to use shelf management system.